


Pearl Strings and Daggers

by OmellasBloodforged



Series: Bloodforged [2]
Category: Warcraft III, World of Warcraft
Genre: Cute, Fluff, Gen, Prequel, Side Story, Teacher-Student Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-13
Updated: 2020-10-13
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:08:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26987233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OmellasBloodforged/pseuds/OmellasBloodforged
Summary: Kids are not allowed at parties in Silvermoon, but that doesn't stop them from showing up anyway.(Prequel to An Arrow in her Quiver)
Series: Bloodforged [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1965496
Comments: 2
Kudos: 9





	Pearl Strings and Daggers

**Year 19 - Silvermoon**

  
  


"Omellas?"

I looked behind me in the mirror. My little sister was rubbing her sleepy eyes with her fists, pigtails coming undone as she yawned quietly. "Go back to sleep, Amaria," I replied in a soft tone. I focused on brushing my fire hair in the moonlight until all the knots had disappeared and the strands fell like silk all over my back.

"Where are you going?" She hugged her stuffed animal to her chest and watched me closely.

An exasperated sigh escaped my chest. I had tried to be so careful not to wake her, making no noise, and dressing in the dark. It had all been for nothing—Amaria was too curious for her own good.

"I'm going out for a while, don't worry." I turned around and walked to her bed, sitting down on the edge. "Stay here, and go to sleep. I won't take long."

"If you're going to the party," she pressed, stubbornly, "I want to go with you."

I pulled the bands from her pigtails and combed her hair with my fingers. "You are too young," I explained, parting her hair in the middle. "Mother and father will be mad at me if they find out. Even I shouldn’t be going!" 

"But I want to hear Lady Sylvanas sing…" She looked at me with pouty lips and puppy eyes, which she had practised to perfection. "I promise I'll be good!"

As I redid her pigtails, I remembered the countless times I had sneaked out of the house when I was her age. Back then, I had been all alone but at least she had me to protect her now. "Ok fine, get dressed. Hurry!"

I held her hand as we made our way to the dining hall. The night was clear, the sounds of the forest creatures reached us with ease, and the stars above us twinkled cheerfully as if to guide our way.

We had to be careful not to get caught by the guards patrolling the city, but I was familiar with their patterns and timings. Sneaking out at night was as natural as breathing to me.

The parties of Silvermoon were always a magnificent spectacle full of light and colours, with singing and dancing and mock battles through the night. Children were usually not allowed to attend unless it was a special occasion. But I was also too curious for my own good—it was a family trait. 

We rushed to hide behind a corner to let the patrol pass. This guard was clearly too comfortable in his job, not even looking around for any sign of danger. Long periods of peace make people grow lax with security detail. Even without major light sources around, I could still spot the other kids hiding as well on the other side of the street. As soon as the guard turned to a different road, we met in the middle.

"It's bad enough you had to come, but why did you have to bring the baby as well?" Tyrel always had an excessively scornful tone when he talked to me, but tonight I wasn't in the mood to put up with him.

"Shut it, Tyrel, you're the baby," I replied, walking faster to take the lead.

"And I'm not a baby, I am already 6!" Amaria stuck her tongue out, and I smiled at her, impressed with her courage to stand up for herself against an older mean boy.

"We have to hide," Ineas whispered when another guard appeared around the corner. I followed him to another dark corner and we waited in silence, crouching behind a balcony until the guard disappeared.

"Nobody likes you anyway," Tyrel mumbled behind me, his ego clearly hurt for being told off by two girls. I ignored him, knowing that not receiving a response to the insults would hurt his pride even more.

The sounds of the party reached us before we arrived at the hall. The happy murmurs and laughter, the clinking of silverware and plates, the sweet melodies of the harps and lutes, each of them an illegal invitation for a gathering we were not allowed to attend. But how could we not, when everything was so dazzling and magnificent?

We stood in the middle of the bushes outside, looking in through the window. I spotted mother and father on the far side, immersed in conversation with other grown-ups. Suddenly, Amaria tugged on my dress. "I'm too small," she whispered. "I can't see…"

"Come here", I said, picking her up. Her eyes grew wide at the luxurious ceremony, her mouth forming a tiny O of wonder.

She was getting heavy, growing up fast. Soon I wouldn't be able to carry her around anymore, and we'd both be focusing more on our play fights instead. She was almost old enough to learn how to hold the weight of a proper training sword and leave the kiddie wooden ones behind. 

Laerin stood on her tippy toes beside me when Lady Sylvanas got up from her chair, using my shoulder as support to keep her balance. The hall fell silent at once, all the faces turned towards her. As she walked to the middle of the room, her long green dress flowed around her ankles, pearl strings on her waist oscillating in tune with her movements.

"When I grow up I want to be just like Lady Sylvanas," Amaria whispered dreamily, cheek resting against the side of my head.

Lady Sylvanas opened her dark red lips, and the most incredible sounds came out as she started to sing. Her voice was light and pleasant, filling the entire room and spilling out into the streets, weaving magic into words. As she sang about the glory and grace of the high elves, she waved her arms to the rhythm of the song and the long lacy sleeves of her dress looked like wings whenever she spread them out. Even the crickets and cicadas in the woods had stopped chirping to listen to her.

When she finished, she left an emptiness in the room, as if the world was not complete without her voice to fill our hearts. Some people wiped away their tears, and everyone applauded as she took a bow. Next to me, the other kids clapped and cheered too.

"Shut up!" I hissed at them with a frown. "They're going to hear us!" But it was too late. Amaria gasped and clamped a hand over her mouth when Lady Sylvanas turned her head sharply in our direction, eyes narrowing at us.

"It appears," she started, when the applause died down, "that we are being watched."

Everyone followed her gaze, turning around to look at us. My cheeks burned with embarrassment for being caught. We were surely going to be punished and-

"Come in, children," she invited, beckoning us with her hands.

I put Amaria on the floor, and she gripped my hand again, trying to hide behind me as we walked around the building and climbed the steps. All the adults watched us as we went inside. I stole a glance at the table where our parents were—father did not look thrilled to see us, but mother had a smile on her face. Perhaps she wouldn't be so mad and would help father understand that we just couldn’t resist.

Lady Sylvanas approached us with an elegance of movement only a few people had, even among elves. "Omellas Silverspirit, the brightest star in the Farstriders galaxy!" She gestured towards me, and I could swear my cheeks were on fire. "You have arrived just in time for the mock battles of the night. Would you like to show everyone what you've been learning?"

My first instinct was to shake my head no. What if I was no good? Was if I tripped and fell in front of everyone? They would all laugh at me, and Lady Sylvanas would regret accepting me as an apprentice and I would-

She held out her hand for me, inviting me forward. Amaria's tiny fingers released my right hand while one of the others gave me a small push on the back, urging me to step forward.

I glanced at mother again, who gave me a small nod of encouragement. Taking Lady Sylvanas' hand, she guided me to the middle of the room, holding tight to release my tension. "As some of you know, I have decided to accept Omellas into our group as an apprentice." A few heads in the audience joined to exchange whispers, but she didn't let that take away her spotlight. "Don't let her young age fool you—even at 14, she is more than capable of taking some of you down!" She looked at me again, grey eyes overflowing with affection as the audience chuckled. Some were pointing at each other in innocent derision. "Would you accept an invitation to a sparring session with me, Omellas?"

I swallowed my fears and nodded in agreement. She rewarded me with a satisfied smile and motioned towards a couple of elves on the back wall. One of them brought her sword, while the other one offered me two daggers. They were not training weapons made of wood or unsharpened steel. Those were real, stunning daggers, each bearing an intricate design with rubies on the hilt. The sharp blades glinted in the bright lights as I positioned myself to start the fight.

"Well that's a bit unfair, don't you think?" Lord Theron stood up, addressing Lady Sylvanas. "You have a big sword, yet the kid only has those puny daggers."

Just a few weeks prior, he had fought with Lady Sylvanas because of me. He disagreed with her decision of making me a Farstrider, spewing despicable things as if I wasn’t in the room. _She’s nothing but a child, she’s just a waste of time and effort and I can’t believe you’re doing this again! She’s just not good enough!_ He had even been rude to her, bringing up her mysterious relationship with Lord Marris and claiming she enjoyed squandering the Farstriders’ resources on worthless and undeserving people. 

All the older Farstriders looked at me as if I was no better than a baby, but I knew I could do it. I worked hard, I deserved to be a Farstrider just as much as them—even if Lady Sylvanas was the only one to see it. I would show them they were making a mistake. I would make them swallow the bitter comments they whispered behind my back. 

"The world is unfair," she replied, solemnly, without even so much as a glance in his direction. Her eyes and focus were only on me.

She had been teaching me how to fight with daggers against other weapons. I understood that if she was giving me the daggers and taking the sword for herself, it meant she knew I could pull this off. Lady Sylvanas would never put me at a disadvantage to mock or hurt me. She knew I could do this. She trusted me.

And if she trusted me, I had to trust myself too. Our eyes met, courage swelling inside me. "Thank you for the concern, Lord Theron," I declared, not looking at him either. "But I can handle myself."

The room erupted in a choir of "ooooh" and Lady Sylvanas let the tiniest of smirks show through her serious façade. Lord Theron, on the other hand, chuckled uncomfortably. "If you say so, child. Begin!"

Lady Sylvanas stepped in immediately, twirling the sword in her hand. She delivered a blow from the right, and I tried to parry. Her attack was so strong that I lost balance and had to take a step back. My heart skipped a beat as I realized she was not holding anything back. She was challenging me in front of the entire city, and I refused to disappoint her. I refused to disappoint myself. She lunged again to attack from the left, and I blocked, using my other arm to hit her. She dodged my advance with a smug smile.

I kept parrying or dodging every blow and then going in to hit her, but I struggled to get close. She was much taller than me, my arms too short to reach her without putting myself at the mercy of her blade. My only shot was to hold on and wait for an opening. The only problem was that Lady Sylvanas did not offer such opportunities to her opponents.

She cut down to my left shoulder, and I stepped away, spinning and jabbing my dagger at her side, missing only by a mere inch. Lady Sylvanas whirled, her long hair flowing around her like water, thrusting her blade. I leapt out of reach, taking the chance to shake my arms and regain balance. My muscles were burning with the amount of strength I had to summon with each defense.

She prepared to deliver a full force overhead attack, and I blocked it with both daggers crossed above me. I breathed in, summoning all my energy, and pushed her sword up and away with a wild cry, spreading my arms wide. I went in boldly, feinting an attack with my right hand. When she tried to block it, I changed direction, bending my knees, sliding across the floor, and swiping at her stomach with my left hand.

The sound of ripping fabric echoed through the hall, a clean tear appearing on her dress over her ribs. A collective gasp seemed to fill the room. Pearls jumped and rolled all over the floor at our feet, the string cut in half, dangling helplessly at her waist.

Everything seemed to stand still for an eternity. I looked up at her, heart racing with fear that she would be angry at me for ruining her pretty dress. Her eyes were wide, fingers probing at the hole in the fabric. Then her gaze fell on me. Her sword hit the floor with a loud clang. "I yield," she announced, raising her hands. Her red lips curved into a smile as the whole crowd erupted in cheers. She took a step towards me, enveloping me in a warm hug. "I am so proud of you, little one."

I thought I was doing it to prove how wrong everyone was about me. But at that moment I knew—I was doing it for her. For both of us.


End file.
